BUFFALO — The magic finally ran out for the Saint Joseph’s Hawks. Not for a lack of effort, though.

The Hawks were game, which is what you would expect of a team that won 20 of its last 25 games including three straight in Brooklyn to capture its first Atlantic-10 Tournament title in 17 years.

St. Joseph’s has been resilient since Villanova put a 30-point whipping on the Hawks Dec. 7 at Hagan Arena.

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Resiliency, toughness and grit only take you so far, though, especially in the tournament. Sooner or later, you run into a team that was just a little bit better, a shade tougher and, in this case, a lot deeper.

And that’s what it was for the Hawks Thursday night at the First Niagara Center.

Seventh-seeded Connecticut was just a little bit better and a whole lot deeper than the 10th-seeded Hawks, who have a bench shorter than Ryne Sandberg’s patience with Jimmy Rollins.

Yet the Huskies still needed overtime to bring Saint Joseph’s magical ride to an end with an 89-81 victory over the Hawks.

Those extra five minutes proved to be too much, even for the gritty Hawks (24-10). The Huskies (27-6) won the extra session, 19-11, to spoil a rematch of the Holy War, Buffalo style.

Instead, it is UConn that will advance to the third round.

The end began when senior Halil Kanacevic fouled out in overtime. He had carried the Hawks to the A-10 title a week ago and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the conference tournament for his effort.

Phil Martelli gave the 6-8 senior a hug just before Kanacevic took his seat on the bench. Kanacevic finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 41 minutes.

Ronald Roberts was the next Hawk to walk glumly off the court and be embraced by Martelli in front of the bench. Roberts had 15 points, 10 rebounds and one blocked shot in 42 minutes.

Last was guard Langston Galloway. He made the long, slow stroll after putting up 25 points in 45 minutes, to close out his career as the second-leading scorer in school history with 1,991 career points. Only Chester’s Jameer Nelson (2,094) scored more.

One more game and Nelson would have had company in the 2,000-point club on Hawk Hill.

The hugs Martelli shelled out weren’t just for what Galloway, Kanacevic and Roberts did Thursday in Buffalo or over the last two weeks. Each embrace was a thank you for four years of dedication and hard work, which is what got St. Joe’s this far.

The Hawks could have packed it in after the Wildcats pinned a 98-68 whipping on them in front of the home folks. It was the worst loss in the history of the Holy War. Instead of going south, though, the Hawks regrouped, as Martelli knew they would.

The seniors had too much pride to do otherwise.

The ride was magical; just ask the many fans who made the six-plus hour trek to Western New York and rooted right to the end, including “The Hawk will never die,” chant as time wound down.

Grit and determination became synonymous with this St. Joe’s team, just ask Dayton, St. Bonaventure and Virginia Commonwealth, which the Hawks sent packing in the A-10 Tournament in Brooklyn. All Dayton did was knock out Ohio State in the first game of Thursday’s afternoon doubleheader at the First Niagara Center.

Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie certainly knows how tough it was to send the Hawks home, and praised St. Joe’s afterward.

While the players may have walked off the court with their heads held low, it was out of sadness, not shame. There is no disgrace in losing when you gave it everything you had as St. Joe’s did Thursday night. UConn was just a little better.

On another night, the story may have been different, but this isn’t the NBA, where teams play a best-of series. This is the NCAA Tournament, where one-and-done rules and the difference between a No. 7 seed and a No. 10 seed is negligible. It can go either way.

Thursday night, it went UConn’s way and St. Joe’s magical run was over, but it sure was fun while it lasted.